Mozambique-Albino-Murder

Mozambique: Police confirm albino boy’s grisly murder

APA-Maputo (Mozambique)

Police in Mozambique's western province of Tete have confirmed that a 17-year-old albino boy was killed and his brain removed for what is believed to be witchcraft.

A police spokesman in the Tete province told APA in a brief telephone interview late on Saturday that her department is investigating the teenager's kidnap and murder.

"We have launched a search and arrest operation for those responsible for the macabre crime in which the criminals took the bones out of the arms and legs, the hair and broke the head to remove the brain from a teenage albino boy", Ferreira explained.

Albinos in Mozambique are often hunted for their body parts, which are used as charms and magical potions in the belief that they bring wealth and good luck.

The body was found after the boy was killed on Wednesday in the Benga area of Tete province.

His murder comes four months after a failed attempt by two parents to sell their albino child in the mineral resource-rich Moatize.district.

Tete, which borders Malawi, is believed to have a large market for albino organ trafficking.

There have been more than 100 attacks against albinos in Mozambique since 2014, according to the UN, with hunters pursuing them for everything from their toes to their faeces.

Ferreira said gangs in neighbouring Tanzania and Malawi were fuelling the trade.

Albinism is a congenital disorder affecting about one in 20,000 people worldwide who lack pigment in their skin, hair and eyes.